The Last Rain
by jezebel-summonthepolice
Summary: Sequel to The First Rain. AU. Two years after meeting Tohru, King Yuki recieves a letter from what seems to be an anonymous admirer. He does not forsee the danger that lies a head, and ultimately, perhaps only a prayer can save him.
1. Leaves and a Letter

Bonjour! Those of you who have not read The First Rain (The original fic this sequel is to), if you don't want to read the original thing, here is a brief synopsis of what happens in the first…Volume.

Tohru Honda works at palace of Akitaio as maid. Stumbles apon Yuki, the future King of Sohma. Tradition that Yuki is locked in room with window closed till becomes king. Tohru has opened window. Duh, stupid Tohru. Tohru falls in love with Yuki. Yuki feels same. Kyo comes. Kyo is married to Kagura. Kagura pregnant. Get in there Kyo. Kyo hates Tohru. Kyo upsets Prime-minister of country. Gets everyone into trouble. Bad Kyo. Yuki is locked away permanently. Escapes, helped by Akito who lives in dark lofty loft, and gets lost in wood. Tohru finds. Akiot is brought into world. Akito swears at crowd. Akito runs away. Yuki becomes king. Yay happy.

And Haru and Momiji are there too…Somewhere… Well, it makes a lot more sense if you read it…

Anyway, I hope you enjoy this sequel! Please read and review!

**Last Rain**

**Chapter One: Leaves and a Letter**

The rare morning sun of Autumn settled in square sheets across the bed. Yuki's eyes remained closed, but he smiled. He was still not quite used to all of the things his window could show him. He moved a little in bed, ntill his head clonked against another.

"Yuki…Are you awake?" A small voice said.

Yuki kept his eyes closed, but his smile grew. "Uh-huh….Did I wake you up?"

Tohru sat up and rubbed her head from where his had knocked it. "You may have…"

They laughed. Yuki opened his eyes, and blinked until the image of his wife was clear. "It's… Autumn now, right?"

"Yes."

"So, it's still not Winter?"

"No…"Laughed Tohru.

"Oh well. I like the leaves in Autumn. But I like snow better…Well, Winter comes after Autumn, doesn't it?"

"Yes!" Tohru laughed once more. "It's strange…To think this'll be your third winter.

"I've had more Winters than anything else." Said Yuki. His grey eyes once more settled on Tohru. "That's why it's my favourite. Because… I spent my first with you."

Tohru rolled her eyes and lay back down on the bed, smiling. "It's too early in the morning for you to be going all mushy."

"It's never too early!"

-

Haru sifted through the messages of the morning. He yawned. Autumn always made him tired for some reason. He lay back on the couch he had been sitting on in front of the fire in the Princes' drawing room, and read through the mail lying on his back. Wrong address… Junk…Complaint…Yuki… Yuki… Momiji… Yuki…Tohru… Yuki… Complaint about Yuki… Invitation…Comlaint… Yuki."

He put the pile of letters on his head and looked towards the door that was being opened.

"Haruuu…. Were you checking the mail?"

"Nnn… You got one."

Momiji sat on his brother's stomach. Haru sat upright in shock, the pile of letters flying from the top of his head, and while the majority of them scattered across the ground, Momiji caught the one addressed to him.

Haru rubbed his stomach and brooded as Momiji walked around the room with the letter in his hand. "So what is it, your secret admirer or something?"

Momiji laughed and began to read the letter aloud."Prince Momiji Sohma, I have written to inform you that you are scheduled for a dental appointment on the 18th of…" Momiji stopped reading and glared at Haru, who was laughing at him from the couch.

-

Tohru had been asked a week ago to attend a meeting in the outskirts of Akitaio that very day, and so she regretfully left Yuki for a far more boring period.

Yuki sighed. He sat on his bed for a moment and looked out of the window. He got a horrible feeling of de-ja-vu, and decided to get out of his room as quickly as possible.

As he strode quickly down the corridor of the fifth floor of the palace, he walked straight into Momiji, and knocked the letters out of his brother's hands. "Smooth Yuki, smooth." Laughed Momiji. "Next you'll fall down the stairs…Again."

"Aww shaadup…" Said Yuki, uffling Momiji's hair as he bent down to help him pick up the mail. "Oh…There's one for me?"

"One? There's about five. And a ton of complaints too."

"Damn…I hate those. How do you reply to someone who is basically telling you you're a crappy King?"Said Yuki, standing back up again and sifting through all of the angry hate-mail.

"Well, there are five letters to you that aren't complaints, and about five that are, so… That means half of the country likes you and the other half…Doesn't…?"

Yuki rolled his eyes. "Well that's a _really _accurate estimate."

Momiji laughed. Then he ran off with his dental appointment letter. "Oh…" On the stairs, he turned back to Yuki, who had sat down on the floor to read the mail. "Yuki!"

Yuki raised his head. "Yes?" He wished he had kept his head down, as a last letter hit him in the face, pointy corner and all.

"It's for Tohru-kun!" Shouted Momiji as he ran down the stairs, stopping only to mount the banister and slide down it.

Yuki put the letter to Tohru next to him, and smiled. He turned back to the others and scratched his head. He put the complaints in one pile, and the rest in another pile. One of them caught his eyes. It was addressed in a crude handwriting, and most of the words mis-spelt. It was filthy, and must have travelled a long way to get to him.

He slid a small silver dagger from under his belt, and forced it under the envelope.

Putting the envelope and the dagger next to him, he unfolded the single sheet of yellowed paper within.

"_Yuki, if yu rember me I am suprized, but I rember yu, so yu shud meet me soon. I think we hav a lott to tork abowt._

_Downt forgett me._

_From the one who luves yu."_

Yuki scratched his head again, and then screwed up the letter and put it behind him. Before opening another, he turned and picked up the discarded letter again. He put it on the floor beside him, and tried to flatten it out by smoothing it against the carpet.

He turned over the paper, and saw a reply address. _Can I…? Why would I want to talk to this person…They could be an assassin or…_ He shook his head. He was beginning to think like Kyo.

"Well… What harm would it do to just keep it?" He said quietly to himself. He put the letter it's envelope and slid that into the front pocket of his waistcoat. _I won't reply…But I'll keep it just incase I get another one and there's a pattern or something. _He took the dagger and began opening the other letters.

-

Late that night, lying next to Tohru, he couldn't get it out of his head. Eventually he couldn't pretend that he wasn't curious. He looked at Tohru, asleep next to him. He closed his eyes, and kissed her on the forehead. She moved slightly in her sleep as he got out of bed and retrieved the paper from the pocket of the waistcoat he had draped over a chair previously.

He sat down in that chair, and sighed, the letter in his hands. He looked around the room. It was much bigger than the one he was used to. He had moved into his father's room a while after his coronation. There had still been no news of him. Everyone assumed he was dead. Whenever Yuki woke up in that bed, in that room, he was always reminded of his father. And the thought always made him guilty.

He wondered, what would his Father think of everything that had happened in the last two years? Kyo's daughter Keiko, his own wedding to Tohru, his coronation. The memory of his parents seemed to be slipping further and further away, as the country tried to forget. Forget the time before Yuki's coronation. They had tried to start fresh. Tried to keep things traditional, but without being ridiculous like before. Yuki had tried to be as good a monarch as he could be, but he always found himself turning to ask his father or Kyo what he should do. And neither were ever there. Kyo had only spoken to him by letters since the previous Spring, in which Yuki had been coronated, and then face to face once more at the wedding in Autumn last year. They hadn't seen each other for a whole year. Yuki was beginning to feel like he had used to. Separated from everyone. Closed off. Window, firmly, securely barred and closed.

He picked up the chair from behind him, and carried it in that awkward way, closer to the desk. He took out a match from one of the drawers of his desk, and lit a candle. The dim light fell over only a small part of the room. That was good. He didn't want to wake up Tohru.

He reread the letter. Once, twice, many times. The words lost all meaning in his head. The letter looked like it had been written by a three year old. He thought of all the three year olds he knew. Keiko? No… The words may have been written in an infantile manner, but the letter meant something. He just needed to figure out what.

-

AN: OMG! It's been what feels like YEARS since I wrote the fust one of this… -cries- I missed that fic…It was my favourite one ever to write…Although my Phantom one gave me an excuse to watch The Phantom over and over and over again! –head rolls around-

AN2: Oh yeah, for those who have not read any of my fics before, my name is Jez and Oy'm plased to meet'cha! I am a Yuki fan and so most of my fics are Yuki-centric. But I plan to write a Kyo fic…And a Hatori fic…And a Kyo X Yuki fic… (I have put that one at the very end of my list because I am scared of writing it and getting flamed by yaoi haters like Laura) …(hides from Laura)

AN3: I also like ANs, so those whodon't like them will simply have to put up with them….Because I write about really important stuff in them sometimes…

AN4: …OMG… I can't think of anything else to say! Nooooooo!

AN5: Oh yeah I can! Read and Review if you want to come and stick your head in my new chocolate fondue fountain I got for Chwissmas.


	2. I Need Some Sleep

AN: Yay…

**Last Rain**

**Chapter two: I Need Some Sleep**

The sound of a pen could be heard scratching through the room. Yuki tried to keep it as quiet as possible. He looked at the letter he was replying to. Come to think of it, his handwriting wasn't too good either. It was probably because before two years ago, the only thing he ever wrote was his name. And that had been scratched into the underneath of his bed with a butter knife when he was six.

He shook his head, trying to repress the memory of how bored he had been.

When he had finished writing, he looked at the letter. There were probably a few spelling mistakes, but he didn't notice them.

"_To anoneymus,_

_In reply to your letter, I don't really no what to right. I don't no who you are. I can't possibly meet you untill you tell me. I would apeshi apreshiate it if you didn't send me anymore letters if you cannot give me this information. _

_Yours sincerely,_

_King Yuki of Sohma."_

Yuki breathed out slowly. He couldn't let Tohru find out about this. If this person was some admirer or stalker, just knowing that he had replied would arouse at the least some suspicion.

After putting the letter in an envelope and addressing it, he put both the first letter and his in the drawer from which he had taken the match. He closed it, but too quickly. Tohru sat up in bed. He jumped. She had done it so suddenly…It was like watching someone rise from the dead.

"Yuki?" He rubbed his eyes. It was early in the morning. He didn't realise he'd been up so long.

"I couldn't sleep." He said truthfully.

Tohru sat and watched as he wearily walked back over to the bed. "You OK?"

Yuki looked at her, but avoided her eyes. He forced a smile. "I'm fine."

Tohru stayed quiet, and didn't lie down again even when he did. He tried to will her to ignore him. To not care about him so much. But it was impossible for that to happen, no matter how much he wished for it.

He sat back up again and looked her in the eye. "I really am fine." She didn't look convinced. "Don't worry about me… Please. I'm fine."

She smiled at him, almost sadly, and lay down again. He did the same, but wrapped his arms around her. She rested her head against his chest and hugged him. _No you're not._ She looked up as far as she could. She could see his face, staring at the wall. She closed her eyes.

-

She tried to sleep. 3:00am came and she was still awake. Eyes closed. Yuki had fallen asleep hours ago. She had tried everything. She was counting sheep, but there was always one she seemed to miss. She hadn't moved an inch in those long hours. Yuki's arms were still firmly around her. She tried to feel him breathing. Sure enough, when she put her head on his chest, she could feel it moving. It was relaxing. If anything was going to help her sleep, listening and focussing on him would work. But for once, even that didn't help.

-

In the later hours of the morning, Tohru looked like a corpse. She was pale, her hair was all over the place, and she kept yawning; especially while people were talking to her.

Yuki was being unnaturally quiet. He had hardly said a thing all day, and as the clock hands twitched slowly towards 3:00pm, Haru began to worry. He took Yuki by the arm and led him towards the drawing room.

Yuki had said nothing, but the alarmed expression on his face communicated that he was surprised.

Haru sat him down on the couch.

"What's going on?" He said worriedly.

"Nothing. Why do you…"He yawned. "...Ask?"

Haru put a hand through his white hair. "You just… You look…" He sat down next to Yuki. "I'm right, aren't I? There's something wrong."

Yuki sighed. He couldn't act anymore. The weight of the last few months was beginning to get to him. And he was worried that it was beginning to show. "Fine…You…Might be right." He said.

"Come on. You know I am."

"I hate it _so much_ when you're right!" Said Yuki. He put a hand on his fore-head. "Damn it…"

Haru leant against the arm of the couch, putting his bare feet on it. "What's up?"

Yuki leant back on the couch. "If I don't stop being so stupid I'll ruin everything."

Haru stared at Yuki behind serious eyes. "What… What are you _talking about…?"_

"I keep thinking the stupidest things. Like… I'm not good enough for her. And she deserves better than me. They're…stupid. If I keep thinking them, she might start to think the same thing. And then I'm screwed. And…What do I do? Dad…He's gone. I'm sure of it now. So…Do I try to be like him? Do I…Just… Carry on? What…What do I… _What do I do_…?"Yuki closed his eyes. Haru stared at him.

"You're so dumb." He smiled. Yuki punched his arm. "She's never gonna think that. And you shouldn't think it either. And yeah, Dad probably is gone. But what can we do about it?"

Yuki sighed. Haru nudged his face with his foot. They both laughed as Yuki swatted away the filthy limb. "I guess you're right. But… There is something else." _Should I…? If he tells Tohru, it's all over._

"What?"

Yuki hesitated, debating whether or not to show Haru. Haru peered at him and edged a little closer. "Well…? You gonna tell me or let it sit on you? It'll haunt you if you keep secrets from me. There'll always be a big, fat fungus in the room with us."

Yuki rolled his eyes, breathed out deeply and produced the letter. Haru took it, and read it. He looked up at Yuki, his equally grey eyes glinting with confusion. "What... Who sent this?"

"I have no idea. It was in the mail yesterday. It doesn't have a name on the bottom."

"Well… Does it matter? If you just ignore it then…"Haru trailed off as he saw Yuki shaking his head and smiling.

"See, that's the stupid thing, Haru. I didn't ignore it. I sent a reply off this morning. In secret." Haru didn't reply. Yuki snatched the letter back and began to pace round the room. "What the hell is _wrong_ with me? I have Tohru. You guys. I'm a king for God's sake, what more could I possibly need?"

"It's not about what you need." Said Haru, quietly. "But… Is it about what you want?"

Yuki stopped walking. He turned back to the sofa. Haru was sitting properly upright, his feet on the floor. "Are you saying… Are you telling me I'm-"

"In need of something more than Tohru-kun? No. I'm saying you just got caught off guard during a depressive episode, caught sight of a chance for escape and in a panicked state, took it."

Yuki processed this. "So…This girl… Or whoever this person is… You're saying they could be… Like… Some kind of retreat from the routine I have here?"

"I have no idea. But that's what your gut must have been telling you."

"Well, _my gut _is the dumbest internal piece of crap I have in my body." Yuki said, waving a fist at his stomach.

Haru laughed. "Just… Tell Toh-…No… She'd probably think you were cheating on her or something. Just… Try to keep her feelings safe, and hide any evidence that you ever saw the lett-… Hey! What are you…" Haru's train of thought rolled off the tracks as Yuki screwed up the letter and plunged it into the warm glow of the fire.

It stayed whole for a second, and was then consumed by flames, a tower of orange curling up the chimney, and then sinking back down again into the small pile of ash that was once a letter. Yuki wiped his brow. Standing so close to the fire was giving him a sweat. Haru thought burning the letter was enough, but he raised both eyebrows when Yuki began to eat the envelope.

Haru sighed. "I didn't say _destroy_ it. And what are you, a goat?"

"I'd have wanted to look at it again if I had kept it. I can't risk her finding out."Said Yuki quietly, before coughing up the wax seal.

-

The light began to fade. Beyond the forests of Akitaio, in a small town called Kiiséa, on the second floor of an inn close to the borders of the woods, a figure could be seen through a window. As the light began to strain and the sun sink under the canopy of trees, the window submitted a dim glow as the inhabitant lit a candle. The sound of a pen scratching was heard through the open window. Everything was quiet.

The figure smiled. They read through the piece of paper they had in their hand. There was a desk in the room, with only a few pieces of paper scattered over it. A letter lay next to a carefully ripped envelope on the desk. Wax from the newly lit candle dripped onto the edge of the envelope, sealing it slightly to the table top.

As the last of the waning Autumn evening light left sight, the moon rose slowly and eerily above the town of Kiiséa. The dark figure, cloaked in black, handed a filled envelope to a horsed messenger.

The messenger read the address from atop his grey mare, and whistled through his teeth. "So, the Palace at Akitaio _again_ then."

"Yes." Replied the figure.

"Gawd… What business does the King of Sohma have with a common drifter, I wonder?"

"Ha ha… He will know, in good time. But for you, it will remain a mystery, I believe."

After rolling his eyes at the cocky wanderer and his irritating choice of route, and with a long sigh at the prospect of riding through the woods at night, the messenger took to the vast forests of mahogany at a steady canter.

The drifter smiled. It was possible to see under the cloak, only the soft pale skin of one that could be of either sex. Only their mouth was visible. And it twisted into a knowing, yet hopeful smile; as the message travelled closer and closer to its destination. All there was left to do, was wait. And if waiting took longer than necessary, a plan had already been compiled.

With one last look into the dark cave-like arches formed by the twisting and curving forms of the trees, the figure turned on their heel, and walked back towards the temporary lodgings.

_Yes…Yuki. I will finally talk with you. _Thought the drifter. _And I will make you fall in love with me. _

-

AN: … Okies, I have a request for any readers. DON'T TRY TO GUESS WHO THE DRIFTER IS. YOU WILL SIMPLY GIVE YOURSELF A HEADACHE…And give it away in reviews… Which will make me cry:

Waaah you ruined my storyline! –_hits with giant inflatable alien_-

AN2: …Kyo is in this fic, just to tell ye. I never write a fic without Kyo having at least one line, even if it's just scoffing at people from the background… Unless it's in a different anime. Like, he got a lead roll in my Phantom fic! See? I don't dislike Kyo, I like him very much. Just… Not as much as Yuki.

Kyo: Thanks. Really, I'm flattered. –_hits with banana_-

Yuki: Yay…

AN3: Oh, and this fic is going somewhere. I have been planning the storyline since I wrote the first one. So I'm not doing what I did with the last one:

Hmmm… -_fiddles_-…Just a…-_fiddles_- …There! –_has made giant inflatable alien_-

AN4: Sorry for the wait. My computer tried to off itself again. Damn thing. –kicks comp-

Comp: -cries-

Jess: Oh shut up you piece of metal B-cks.

Comp: -kills self-

Jess: …Maybe I should have seen that coming…?

AN5: OK, Kiiséa is half because I am basing the names of places in Sohma after main Furuba characters, (Kisa) and half because I like doing these flicky line things . Aren't they fun?

Jess: -is easily entertained-


	3. Ther In Mye Hart

**Last Rain**

**Chapter Three: Ther In Mye Hart**

Yuki spent the evening pretending to be happier than usual. It felt empty to him, but Tohru seemed to be reassured, as she began to act normally and managed to sleep again.

Yuki sat at his window sill. It brought back all the familiar feelings. But they all seemed to fit into his new life just as they had before. Unfairness, inequality…The longing for something more. Wanting freedom. How could they all fit into place now? Why was he feeling so strange? His life was exactly as it had been for the past two years. Why the changed mind all of a sudden? But then, maybe that was the reason.

_Maybe it was too early for me to settle down? I've never left the cty borders. And there's no reason for me to, ever. Because I'm married now. _Yuki smacked his head against the wall. There was a dull thud, and everything went out of focus for a few seconds. _Don't be stupid. What would you do with your life if she hadn't been there? You couldn't have ever left. Ever. No questions asked._

He blinked the small trail of blood out of his grey eyes. He looked at the wall. There were a few blood spot on it. _Well that was stupid…. Maybe the 'knocking some sense into your head' theory was taken a little too seriously?_

He wiped the blood off his forehead, and dizzily went back to bed. He lay down next to Tohru, and smiled. _I've been so blind, Tohru. I'm sorry. _

-

Momiji groaned as he felt himself being woken from a deep sleep. A hand around his shoulder was shaking him awake. He turned over and murmered in his sleep.

"Five more minutes…"

"Momiji-kun! You have to help! Yuki, _he's been murdered!"_ Momiji's eyes flew open.

"Wha-?"

Tohru was sitting on the bed, her eyes overflowing with tears. "He's dead!"

"Hey, what's going on?" Yuki trudged into view and stood in the door frame, his tired voice speaking in a monotone.

"Um…He doesn't look too dead to me…? Tired, not dead." Saiid Momiji, smiling.

"Yuki! You're alive!" Tohru hugged him round the waist from the bed.

"Um… Yes…?"Yuki laughed. "When wasn't I…?"

"There was blood all over the sheets… And you looked so pale…I thought you were…"

"Um, you've got red on you, Yuki." Momiji pointed at Yukji's head. He wiped away the drying blood.

"Oh… You mean this? I bumped my head last night… It's not important. Sorry I scared you."

"Where's the murderer! I'lll kill 'im!" Haru ran in, sword brandished, in nothing but a pair of breeches.

"Uh… There is no murderer." Said Yuki, half-laughing. "I'm right here Haru."

"Oh." Haru put his sword behind his back and looked into the distance. "I knew that."

-

"Yuki… You've got mail." Yuki sighed. He'd been waiting with baited breath as Haru had once again leafed through the small piles of mail they got every day.

He handed two letters to Yuki, and kept the rest. "Those are the only two you'll want. I'll handle the rest."

Yuki peered at the letters in Haru's hand. Some were addressed to him, but were written with the familiar quickly-scrawled handwriting he associated with the complaints.

"Thanks."

-

Yuki sat opposite his desk once more. The afternoon was quickly melting into eve, and he still hadn't opened the anonymous letter. The first had been from a distant cousin, by name of Hiro. (He had been made to write a letter, and it was full of childish yet sophisticated remarks. Yuki had put it in a desk drawer and tried to forget about it, unaware of how to handle such a letter.)

"Yuki?" Tohru's voice sounded. Yuki closed his eyes, and found the sound of it most agreeable.

He turned around. "Yes?"

"Are you alright?" She walked towards the desk and hovered.

Yuki smiled. "Yeah. I'm fine." _Please go away… It's so very hard to keep things from you…I just don't know how to do it._ "I've… Just… Got something on y mind. That's all."

Tohru tilted her head to the side. She pulled up her own chair to the desk in the same awkward way Yuki had done before. Yuki smiled sadly._please don't ask me to tell you. You know I can't refuse…_

"What's going on, Yuki?"

Yuki took a deep breath. She didn't have to know exactly what it had said. "I've been getting weird mail. And… It's sort of scaring me. I got another letter today… And I'm afraid that if I open it, it'll change everything… And take away everything I've ever loved. And… you."

Tohru put her arms round his shoulders. "I'm not going anywhere."

"I don't want to open it… But at the same time… I really want to know what it says."

Tohru moved her chair closer, and put one arm round his shoulder, laning her head on the other. With her other hand, she picked up the letter. "Let's open it together."

Yuki thought about this for a moment. He reluctantly took his dagger from the desk top, and as Tohru held the letter down on the table with both hands, he put one of his on top of hers. As he slid his dagger underneath the same seal as the previous letter, he did it slower than normal, so he didn't catch her fingers with the blade. As the envelope came loose, he gave her hand a squeeze.

He took out the familiar yellowed page, and scanned over the same scrawl.

"What does it say?" She said, her hand still underneath his, the other lightly pinching the side of the paper.

_Yuki,_

_Im hapy that yu replyd. And Iam sory I cannot tel yu who I am. But yu wil find owt in good time. Stay with me, mye yuki, and we will be unyted finaly._

_From the one who holds yu in ther hart._

Yuki didn't read it out loud. He saw Tohru reading it slowly from the corner of his eye. He felt hot, and began to blush. He didn't know what to do. He wished there was some kind of escape route he could take to get out of the situation, but there was no way out.

"You wrote to them?"

"I didn't know what to do. I couldn't just leave it." _I let curiosity get the best of me. And I may have broken something I held so dear for so long._

"Well, the only thing you can do now, is try to ignore it. You don't… Know this person, do you?"

The worried and almost sad expression on her face panicked Yuki. _Oh god… she thinks I'm having an affair… Crap! What do I do?_ "Of course not! I haven't any idea! I don't even know if it's a girl or a boy or an animal!"

"Animals can't write, Yuki." Tohru laughed.

"Oh yeah… Old habit…" They both laughed. Yuki looked at her big brown eyes and smiled. _You believe me, don't you? I will want of nothing else, so long as I have you with me. Loving me._

-

The writer of this letter waited. They waited and waited, till the moon ate the sun and the stars watched, cheering it on. And they received no reply.

The drifter had, however, intercepted a message of some great importance.

They smiled maliciously as they held the letter, written in rough but legible handwriting.

_If you're going to play the game hard, then I'll oblige. I'm ready for a challenge, Yuki. You may not want to put yourself at risk, but what about everyone else?_

The drifter put their hand through their hair, and looked out towards the forest. Their dark eyes moved far over a mass of dark green, almost grey in the moonlight. The roves of Akitaio were visible, and the drifter could only just see the towering form of the palace.

_I will have you for myself. No matter what. _

_-_

AN: Hewwo… I'm sorry… This chapter must be really boring to read… The only bit I like is Yuki's death (haha… gotcha didn't I?) and the Yuki X Tohru mush in the middle. Oh, and if Elizabeth Dykstra McCarthy ever reads this (which I will make her later… muwahahaha…) I am going to say this now. No. Haru and Momiji will NOT end up together, as they ARE brothers. DON'T WRITE CREEPY THINGS IN MY REVIEWS YOU HORRIBLE SHREW! … Actually, that's the same thing I have called Tohru more times than one… Nothing against shrews… it just… Seems t suit her sometimes… (would much rather BE Tohru… But thass neva gonna happen…-cries-)

AN2: I am so sorry for the wait on the last chapter…

AN3: I am going to now resume the, 'make stupid jokes about the chapter' thing I did with the First Rain. So, I will call it: …Someone think of a name for it will you?

S.T.O.A.N.F.I.W.Y? No 1

Tohru: Let's open it together.

Yuki: _fiddles with envelope, fails with the 'opening letter concept', and tears the thing to pieces, eating the remains._

Tohru: Um…

Yuki: The nerves got to me. What can I say? I like to eat. Is that so wrong?

Tohru: Yeah… But _paper?_

AN: If anyone has read fushigi yugi or the fics by Threshie, it's a bit like the akugi/pardon the parody. (makes me laugh so hard). It may get funnier… It may not… Who knows? Only time and my sense of humour can tell.


	4. Lost Life

**The Last Rain**

**Chapter Four: Lost Life**

A prince of Sohma walked anxiously through the forests of Akitaio. He would call out occasionally, and could be seen glancing all around him as if to be looking for something very valuable or precious. Sweat rose upon his forehead –although the sky was grey and dripping with rain- and his eyes were fixed in an expression of terrified worry. He held a white piece of material in one hand, spotted with little marks of dirt.

"Keiko?"

-

Momiji rubbed his eyes. It was getting late. Everyone seemed to be pre-occupied with something important he didn't know about. He had heard Haru and Yuki talking quietly, something about a letter… And Yuki and Tohru were talking about a message. Perhaps the same one? He didn't bother thinking about it too much. It was probably something private he wasn't supposed to know, but still. Being the only one there apart from the servants who didn't know what they were gushing on about was pretty frustrating.

He sat in the drawing room, without a thing to do. The others were talking upstairs. He twiddled his thumbs. He poked the couch. He rolled around on the floor kicking the carpet.

"Gah! When did this place get so boring?"

There was a sound, like metal against metal. It rang through the halls outside the drawing room. Momiji just about heard it through the door.

_Must be a visitor or something…_ Leaping at the chance to claim a job, he ran from the floor, out of the drawing room and into the hall…

…Where someone was already opening the door.

_Damn it…_ He cursed in his head. _I was hoping to occupy myself somehow…_ Irritated, he turned back towards the drawing room.

"Prince Kyo!"

Momiji did a double take. _No… It couldn't be, could it?_ He slowly turned around. Sure enough, there was his brother, drenched from the sudden rainstorm, white hankercheif in hand, mud-stained suitcase in the other, looking as if he'd walked into the wrong palace.

"K-Kyo…?"

The distracted prince looked up through his thick orange hair, and his Red Eyes met Momiji's Brown ones. This was only for a second however, as Kyo's eyes began darting all over the hall. The alienated servant who had opened the door to Kyo was almost backing away with bewilderment.

"Where's Yu…" Kyo trailed off, his hand gently nudging Momiji out the way as he walked towards the giant marble stairs, his eyes directed towards the domed ceiling.

"Kyo…?" Momiji received no reply. He followed Kyo, just in case his possessed state caused him to fall down the stairs or something.

The servant ran out of the hall, pretending like she had seen nothing.

-

The Prince trudged evenly up the stairs. His eyes were dark and clouded, veiled by his flaming hair. Momiji ran along side him, desperately trying to make him stop the act that was scaring him so much.

"Kyo… Kyo wait!"Momiji tried to grab the back of his brother's cloak to stop him. Kyo simply carried on walking.

Momiji ran faster and stood in front of his brother, his arms outstretched. "That's enough Kyo!" The Prince's hand extended, and pushed Momiji out the way. Momiji skittered on the staris in his bare feet, and stared after Kyo in confusion as he continued to drag himself up the stairs.

The Prince reached the destination he was looking for. He turned the handle, and the door clicked, and creaked open.

"Kyo!"

-

Kyo stood in the doorway. He was still dripping. Instead of the dark expression he had previously worn, he now stood with a face full of shock and horror.

Yuki was standing up, equally shocked, but not horrified. He would have been tremendously happy, were it not for that terrified look on his brother's face.

Tohru stayed where she sat. She still hardly knew Kyo, though they had made their peace long ago. She was worried, nevertheless.

Hatsuharu was half standing, half sitting, not able to decide which was more suitable.

Kyo just stood, and stared past the faces of his closest relatives. He finally looked at Yuki, and said, with a voice so quiet it was hardly his own, "I shouldn't have come here."

With that, he turned and tried to walk away from the room. He was met headlong with Momiji, who bumped into him. With this delay, Yuki and Haru were able to grab Kyo by the arms and drag him back in before he made a run for it.

Momiji secured the door, leaning against it. Tohru hovered. Yuki and Haru sat Kyo down on the bed. Haru pulled up a chair and sat on it backwards. Yuki stood near the bed, watching avidly his brother's almost forgotten face.

Haru leant closer. "OK brother. You got some explainin' to do."

Kyo looked up a him, the same worried expression on his face. "I-I shouldn't be here… I should be out looking for her…" He tried to stand up, but Haru leaned forward again and grabbed his arms. Yuki gently pushed Kyo down by one of his shoulders.

"Looking for who, Kyo-kun?" Said Tohru, worriedly.

"K-Keiko…"

Momiji and Tohru both covered their mouths with one hand in unison.

"Why…? Where is she?" Said Haru.

"I don't know!" Shouted Kyo. He was acting as if he was being interrogated. "Sh…She was right next to me… And then she just disappeared… I looked everywhere. She wasn't still on the ship… And she… She wasn't…" Kyo stopped, unable to carry. He put a hand to his forehead and looked at Yuki. "She's only two, for God's sake…"

-

Yuki sat quietly in the drawing room. The others were upstairs with Kyo. He had been asked to come down to receive a message. He had opened it… And read it. But he wished he had done neither.

_Yuki_

_Yu mae alreddy no, but Kako Sohma is missing. Yu wil find I am responsibal for this. If yu want her bak, yu wil negoshiate with me. Or yu mae not find her alive._

Yuki held the cold, lifeless paper in his hand. How was he going to tell Kyo? How can you tell someone that it's your fault. Your fault, that their whole life has been taken away. That their two year old daughter had been kidnapped, because of you.

The answer? You don't.

-

"Yuki?" Tohru, Momiji, Kyo and Haru looked around the palace. They looked in the gardens, and in almost every room in the palace.

Haru came to the drawing room for the second time. He breathed out slowly.

Then… Something caught his eye that he hadn't seen before. The letter.

Haru picked it up, and read it quickly, his face growing colder with every word.

"Oh Yuki…"

-

AN: Oh no… Here we go. The Jess which makes everything dark and depressing, strikes again.

AN2: Yeah, Kyo must have seriously looked as if he was on drugs…

AN3: And here it is, what no-one's been waiting for, to the fangirls -and the odd gay fanboy- reading this, here is: someone think of a name for it! (seriously, I can't keep that name)

S.T.O.A.N.F.I

Kyo: I should be out looking for her…

Tohru: Looking for who, Kyo-kun?

Kyo: _sparkly eyes_ Jamie-Lynne Spears! She so hot, and she's like eighteen now, and there's this fan-base counting down the days until her next birthday….

Yuki; You stalker!

AN4: Seriously, they'll get funnier.


	5. Howls In The Dark

**The Last Rain**

**Chapter Five: Howls In The Dark**

The King stumbled through the thick black forest. He had no idea where he was going. All he felt was the need to find the girl: to find her, and bring her back. And be done with this anonymous kidnapper.

Yuki had left after reading the letter. He couldn't stand the guilt. He had quickly pulled on a cloak and ran before anyone saw him.

And now, unsurprisingly, he was lost. He had only been into the forest a couple of times. It held memories, nonetheless. But tonight, none of those memories were visible. The woods were a new and twisted place. He had come into them alone, only once before. And he was then unaware of why he was there. And what he was to do. Besides. The girl he had not yet known to be his future wife had quickly joined him.

Now he was alone. And aware of where he was. It was the knowledge that frightened him.

-

"What…You mean… He's gone out? Alone!" Tohru exclaimed, the fear sounding in her voice.

"Yes. He's probably going through the forests, that's the only way he knows to get out of the city." Haru said, stony faced.

Haru and Tohru were in the hall, Haru was holding the letter in his hand, and Tohru had just finished reading it.

"I'm going after him." came a determined voice from behind them. Tohru turned around. It was Kyo. He must have heard the whole conversation as he came down the stairs.

"K-Kyo-kun…" She paused as he put on the cloak he had only just taken off. She had been about to stop him. She realised that he had every right to go after Yuki. His brother and his daughter were both in danger. Who was she to stop him? "Be careful."

-

The three remaining royals solemnly closed the door to the main hall. Momiji began to walk up the stairs, slowly and quietly.

"Where are you going?" Haru said, pushing the door untill the click of it closing echoed around the hall.

Momiji sniffed. "Bed. This is all too much for me. Besides…" He said, smiling sadly. "What more can we do?"

Tohru said goodnight to Momiji, and Haru stayed quiet. Momiji slowly disappeared.

"Let's go into the drawing room, shall we?" Said haru. "There's no point the both of us freezing out here when there's still a fire going."

Tohru forced a smile.

-

They sat down in the warm room. Through the tall windows, the stars glinted, but reflections from the bright fire repeated themselves in the crystal.

Haru breathed out slowly, and inhaled even slower. He glanced at Tohru from next to her. Tears were glistening in her eyes. She was staring into the fire, the warm orange glow of it resting on her sad face.

Without looking at him, or changing her expression, she spoke. Her words sounded through the awkwardly silent room like birds in the stillness of a winter morning.

"If I never knew him…" She said, a tear dripping silently down her rosy cheek. "…He'd be so much better off."

Haru frowned. "You can't blame this on yourself. He wrote back to this person. Not you."

"Don't you see, Haa-kun?" It was one of the first times Tohru had ever questioned Haru. He found it disturbing. "If I had never met him… He would be safe. He'd still be in that room. No danger at all."

"That's exactly why it's so wonderful that you did meet him." Said Haru softly, smiling. "He'd be safe, but he'd still be a prisoner of his own ignorance. You… Freed him. Don't _you_ see? He loves you more than life itself. I know it."

Tohru looked at him. He smiled at her, his pale eyes warm and comforting. She turned back to the fire. "You're a great friend, Haa-kun."

-

Kyo pushed his way back through the woods he had come through when looking for Keiko. He called out Yuki's name, and occasionally that of his daughter. But he found no reply.

There was a sound in the distance. Something like the howl of a wolf or feral dog. He winced. He'd forgotten about the wolves. It only made him press on.

The rain was still falling lightly. But the amount that lay on his face grew with every step. It began to trickle down and dampen his clothes. The dirt below him churned up with the water and mixed itself into mud. The thought of all the things that could be happening to his little girl was sickening… For comfort he pulled the white handkerchief out the pocket of his waistcoat.

As he did so, he took his hand away from the tree he had been leaning on for support. He fell forward, one hand outstretched, into the cold mud. He picked himself up a little, and looked at the white cloth, now stained with the black mud. He used it to wipe some of it off his face. As the rain began to fall harder, he held it to his face and smelt it. Even with the rain and the mud, and the fear in the moist air, it still smelt like her.

"_Take this when you go, won't you"' She said, handing me the handkerchief. I took it, confused yet smiling._

"_Why?" _

"_It'll be like I'm there with you. I wish I could come… I hate the thought of not being with you for that long." Her brown eyes looked at the floor, sadly as she smiled._

_I put my hand on her cheek and rubbed away the tears welling in her eyes with my thumb. "Don't worry. We'll be back before you know it."_

_I felt my right hand being grasped by another. I looked down, and smiled at Keiko. I turned towards the door. _

"_Kyo?"_

"_Yes?" I turned back to her._

"_Be safe."_

Kyo looked at the handkerchief. He felt he didn't have the strength to go on any longer. So he confided in the only person who's spirit he knew was guiding him.

"Kagura… I don't know what to do…" He said, his eyes welling. Unlike he would normally, he didn't try to blink the tears away with his frustration. He just carried on talking. "I lost the baby. And… I looked everywhere… But I just can't find her… I don't know what to do… She's so little… There's still so much she doesn't know… She won't be able to…" He took a deep breath. "What should I _do?"_

-

Yuki blinked. The rain was getting in his eyes. It didn't make much difference though. He could hardly see a thing anyway. He was in a part of the woods he didn't know. (Though that could apply to most of it.) The trees thinned out, not so closely grouped together. There were rocks, -one of which he was sitting on-, and the landscape seemed to slope upwards. As if there were mountains. He didn't know what to call these rocky hills, so he just decided to call them mountains anyway.

He rapped the cloak around himself. The rain was icy cold, and his body was tense from trying not to shiver. The surrounding trees provided no protection form the rain, and he wondered whether he should find a more dense part of the forest. But he knew there was no time to worry about things like that.

He had to find Keiko.

-

AN: Yay… I am finally getting to the part of the story where I make everyone get lost! I love those bits…

AN2: Yeah… For anyone not reading First Rain, Kyo is married to Kagura. Muwahahaha… I know, most people hate that. But I like it! But only in fics… not the actual thing…

AN3: No-one's thought of a better name for it, so I will have to carry on calling it **S.T.O.A.N.F.I.**

Kagura; Take this before you go… _-gives handkerchief-_

Kyo: Er… Thanks… _-blows nose on keepsake-_

Kagura: - . – Ew.

**S.T.O.A.N.F.I take two!**

Kyo: Don't worry. We'll be back before you know it.

Kagura: Kyo?

Kyo: Yes?

Kagura: DON'T LEAVE WITHOUT **KISSING ME GOODBYE!** WHY YOU LITTLE- -_attacks-_

Yuki: Are you sure she's growing on you…?

AN4: OK, next chap may be a while…


	6. Slipping Sliding Dream

**The Last Rain**

**Chapter Six: Slipping Sliding Dream**

Yuki blinked open his heavy eyelids. He surveyed the area from under his thick eyelashes. He was in the forest, but it was light now, and he could see more clearly since the rain had stopped. The 'mountain' he was on the slope of was covered in thick grey mud, as was he. He looked around closer, and saw that he was lying in the mud, his head leaning precariously on a damp rock.

_I… Must have fallen asleep here… Damn!_ He picked himself up, and shook his head to shock himself awake. A few leaves and a beetle flew out of his hair.

He coughed. His mouth was lined with dirt, and it tasted gravely and dry. He began to unsteadily climb down the mountain, but then thought better of it, when he realised it was almost a vertical drop. _How did I get up here last night?_ He thought, edging away from the drop, a sudden fear of heights embedding itself in his chest. He lay on his stomach and edged towards the drop, looking down. There was a mass of broken rock underneath him. It must have broken in the night…

He sat down away from the edge, and sighed. He'd have to figure out a way to get down before he could look for Keiko…

-

Kyo sat down on the ground, exhausted. Morning had come, but there had still been no sign of Keiko or Yuki. He rubbed some dried dirt off his cheek, and looked around. Every tree looked exactly the same…

He picked up a stick nearby, and drew a large cross in the mud. He stood up, and made it thicker and longer. If he came across it again, he'd know that he was going around in circles.

-

In the mountains of the forest, (which incidentally _were_ mountains) the trees were blown softly by the wid. The rain had stopped. The grass smelt dirty, and the rock was caked with mud.

A young girl, of about two years old, sat on one of these rocks. Her soft red hair was blown gently by the wind, and she stared down into the forests at a loss. She had no idea where she was, or when her kidnapper was going to come back. She had cried before, but the tears would no longer come, and she didn't have the energy to force them.

"Daddy…"

-

"What I don't understand, is how come Kyo didn't write a letter to us saying that he was coming?" Said Momiji. The three of them were in the drawing room, waiting and hoping.

"Maybe it got lost? It did come overseas…"Said Tohru, pulling on a lock of her brown hair.

"Or maybe…" Haru mused, also fiddling with Tohru's hair. "Maybe the kidnaper got it…"

"What do you mean?" Said Tohru.

"It would explain a few things…" Said Momiji. "Like, ow the kidnapper knew Keiko was going to be there and when…"

"The perfect crime." Said Haru. "The bitch or bastard…"

Time passed slowly and painfully for the ones waiting for news of Yuki or Kyo… They waited sadly for their return. Evening came once more, and there was still no word. Haru could take it no longer.

"Haa-kun…? Where are you going?" Tohru called after him as he stormed away from the drawing room and out of the hall. The rain had started up again about two minutes ago, which was one of the reasons Haru had been inspired.

"I'm going to find them."

"But-…" Tohru followed him to the stables. He opened a stall and led out a grey horse. A stallion. As he mounted, Tohru began to feel the tears pricking in her eyes once more. "I don't know what I'll do if you don't come back….You and Momiji are all I've got now…"

Haru's hand rested on the top of her head. "Don't say things like that. Of course I'm coming back. Just be patient and strong. I'll bring your Yuki back."

With that and a smile, he spurred the horse on, and rode off towards the forest. _I swear, I'll bring them back._

-

Yuki leant against a tree, leaning on his right leg, the left he held up with both hands. "Ow ow ow… Damn cliff…" He looked up the small cliff he'd foolishly just jumped off.

His hands were scraped and bleeding, and he'd twisted his ankle when he landed. "Damnit…" He walked slowly away from the mountain-side, trying not to slip in the rain or to put too much weight on his left leg. He winced whenever it touched the ground. "Damn… Damn… Ow… Damn… Keiko… where are you…?"

Yuki walked slowly through the forest, bleeding, filthy and exhausted, looking for a needle in a haystack. He didn't even know what Keiko looked like. He had never seen her before.

-

Haru rode through the forest like he had left behind a bomb. He swiftly dodged trees and branches, his horse nimbly darting from place to place.

Eventually he pulled his horse to a trot when he got to a certain depth of the forest. If he had continued to gallop through, he probably would have ridden straight into a tree and been knocked out. He sighed. This looked like it would be a long search.

"OK boy…That's enough…" He said softly to the horse, who slowed down to a walk. Haru swung himself off and sat down on the ground, the reign looped over the horses head and in his hand. He leant his back against the thick trunk of a tree, and closed his eyes. He breathed out a long sigh of remorse, the rain cooling his flushed face as he did so.

He felt a soft, damp, wiping sensation on his cheek, and looked up to see the horse licking his face. "Gaah! G-get…off…" He started laughing, and stroked the horse's soft nose. It breathed heavily through it's large nostrils, sending out a comforting wave of warm air.

Haru smiled. "Well… At least I have one friend out here…"

He lifted himself to his feet, and patted the horse on it's shoulder. Suddenly, something caught his eye.

A large cross, only faintly visible now because of the rain, was drawn in the mud below him. Haru knelt down, and looked at it. _Yuki wouldn't think to do this….)_ He straightened up, and mounted his horse.

_Alright Kyo. I'm on the right track. We're in this together._

-

Yuki looked up at the starry, showering sky. The earth was still so new to him… He had still seen hardly anything he would have liked to… And he still had barely a single experience.

The Monarch sat down in the grass. The mud was being washed downhill now, and as he was still on a slope, the grass –though dirty- had become visible.

Above him was another stupid mountain, below him another steep-stupid-slope. He was starting to get irritated by this inconvenient landscape. He sighed.

"What would a young King of Sohma be doing out in the forest…So late at night, I wonder…?"

Yuki looked up. A voice had come from the mountain-side.

"Wh-…Who's there…?" He asked, his voice muffled by the rain.

"No-one you want to see."

-

AN: Yay… This is fun…we're getting to the important bit soon…

AN2: I go back to school on Tuesday! Noooooooooooooooooooooooo….

AN3: **S.T.O.A.N.F.I?** You guys have failed to come up with a title… I am displeased! –_is displeased-_

Tohru: _-runs after Haru-­ _Ha-kun! Where are you going?

Haru: _-Enters stables-_ I'm going to find them.

Tohru: B-but…

Haru: _-comes out mounted upon large cow-_ To infinity…And away! _–gallops into distance-_

Tohru: _-sweatdrops- _You'll find it's 'and beyond.'


	7. The Sohmas' Wolf

**The Last Rain**

**Chapter Seven: The Sohmas' Wolf**

"Who…Who's there…?"Yelled Yuki, fear suddenly seizing his heart. Who would know who he was, out here in the forest.

He looked around, frantically trying to put a face to the voice he could recognise yet knew not whom it belonged to.

"Don't worry. I' right here."

Yuki looked up towards the mountain. There… In the space similar to the one from which he had fallen, was a huge, grey wolf.

"No…It can't be…Animals can't talk…They can't write…"

"Who told you that?" Said the wolf. It's long pink tongue slid over it's sharp, dripping teeth.

"St-stop it…" Yuki put his hands over his ears. "It's a dream…I'm dreaming! This is all just…"

"A nightmare?" The wolf padded towards the edge of the rock shelf, and stood in a ready stance, as if it was gong to pounce any moment.

The rain continued to fall. Yuki crouched down in the mud, his hands still over his ears, his eyes dripping with terrified tears. _This…It's not right….She told me animals couldn't talk…Couldn't understand humans…How is this possible?_ His worst fear, was that this animal, this creature, the one that stood so threateningly close yet high above him, was the writer of the notes that had poisoned his life from the moment they touched his skin.

"G-…Go away… Please." Yuki closed his eyes and leant down so his hair dipped into the mud. He wrapped his arms over his head, and tried to shut out everything around him. "Just…Leave me alone…"

"Don't you want her back?" The creature finally left it's position and landed agilely next to Yuki. It nuzzled the back of his neck. "The girl?"

The voice seemed so far away… Knowing that the maker was so close was hardly believable. Yuki didn't know what to believe. If Tohru had lied about this…What else had she lied about?

"Please don't hurt Keiko." Yuki said, his voice quiet. He unwrapped his arms and turned around, staring face to face with the huge wolf. "I'll…Do anything."

"Anything?" The wolf was licking it's teeth once more, and saliva began to thickly stream from it's open mouth, it's tongue hanging out from between it's line of teeth. "Even…Give your own life for the child?" It began to growl, and curled it's black lips back, no longer giving the illusion of the teeth being smaller than they actually were.

Yuki hung his head, but looked through his dripping hair at the monstrous beast, it's ferocious looking snarl and it's dripping fur.

He thought of Tohru. And Haru. Momiji. Kyo. Kagura. And last of all, Keiko.

"Yes."

There was a stillness in the air. The only sound was the growl in the wolf's throat. Yuki looked up at it with sad eyes. And that was the last split second he had.

Before Yuki could change his mind, say or do anything, the wolf grabbed him y the neck and forced him off the flat part of the hill, sending them both skittering down the slope, the wolf's teeth still clamped in the boys skin. There was a sound like laughter in his ears, and as they both tumbled towards the bottom.

Yuki lay face upwards, unable to move. The wolf had released him, only for him t be ravaged by it's claws and teeth. Tears streamed down his face as he felt the points tearing at his pale skin, blood rising from the deep to splatter over the faces of both him and his attacker.

The same voice shouted something, and the wolf skittered away on the mud, out of side. Yuki lay still facing upwards. He could see the angry skies as the rain tossed itself down over him. He saw the hilltop through clouded teary eyes, and a figure appear at the top. He could hardly see it, but it looked tall, and next to it appeared another figure. That of a child. A young girl.

_Keiko…_

"That was more than I can stand…" Said the same voice. "You actually believed that dumb beast could speak to you." _He was throwing his voice…So….Tohru was telling the truth?_ "What a fool…"

Yuki closed his eyes. He tried to block out the sound of the laughter. _Make it stop…Someone….Help me…_

"Now…I'll still forgive you. You disobeyed my requests, but I'll forgive you. Perhaps I'll just leave this girl to the other wolves?"

_No…Keiko…_ With all the strength he had, Yuki forced himself up, and clawed his way to the top of the hill, the laughter forever sounding in his face. As he did, the water drained from his eyes, and the blood dripped from his torn face. The figure became clearer.

He finally saw who it was. But it was the knowledge that terrified him.

"B-…Brother…"

Akito smirked, his black hair shining from it's dampened surface. The girl next to him tried to pull her arm free of his grip, but he only held on tighter.

"So you do remember me."

Yuki tried to get to the top of the slope, his hands slipping in the mud. His bloody chest was rubbing against the slope, and mud was getting into the wounds. There was a gash on his stomach from the fall down, and blood was pumping out of it the more he tried desperately to reach his twin brother.

In a final act of desperation, and expecting nothing, he outstretched his arm to the drifter, who –to his surprise-, took it, and pulled him up.

Yuki sat down on the ground below his brother's sneering face. He looked into the cold black eye's of what could have been his twin, and received only one 'consolation'.

"You're pathetic."

-

Haru had headed in the direction he assumed the writer of the cross would have chosen, but he was getting nowhere. _If only I had a better sense of direction…_

"H-Haru?"

Haru looked in the direction from which his name had been called, and spotted his older brother. "Kyo! …You look…Disgusting." It was true. The prince was covered in mud from head to foot, and had a leaf in his hair. Which the horse ate.

"Thanks. Any sign of them?"

"No. You?"Said the prince sady.

"Not a clue. Though I did see what I assumed was _your_ cross?"Haru said, offering a hand to his brother.

The hand was taken…"Oh…I haven't seen that for hours…"…And Kyo let himself be hoisted up onto the horses back alongside Haru.

Kyo sat behid Haru, who steered the horse, and they trudged through the muddy forest, Haru looking left, Kyo looking right and the horse looking straight ahead.

Kyo felt a lot more at ease with his laid back little brother near him, though he would never admit it. And Haru felt relieved that he had found at least one of the missing many.

-

The girl eyed the man who had just about managed to climb up the hill. He was soaked, dirty, bleeding, and appeared to be very sad as well. She realised that he might have been coming to rescue her, and then she felt sorry for him. But then she heard him call her kidnapper 'brother', and she saw him as the abductor's accomplice.

She didn't really care either way. All she wanted was to be safe in her fathers arms once more. And the idea kept slipping further and further away.

"Keiko…"

The hurt man spoke to her for the first time. She looked into his grey eyes, and saw no hope in them.

Before Akito had a chance to move, Yuki had drawn his dagger, and slashed at his brother's arm, causng him to let go of the girl's wrist.

"Run Keiko! Go back to your father!" Without thinking, she ran as fast as her legs could carry her, which for a two year old, was pretty fast.

The wind rushed through her red hair, and the felt tears of both fear and relief staining her cheeks. She slipped, and fell down a part of the long slope, but picked herself up at the bottom. And from there, she continued to run, until she was as lost as the others who roamed this dark forest.

-

"You little bastard!" Akito yelled, his voice echoing around the hills. "How dare you!" He let go of his bleeding arm, and with the other, slapped his brother round the face. The impact sent Yuki tumbling back down the slope he'd just climbed.

The rocks and twigs sticking out from the mud -that was beginning to flow faster now that the rain had increased- tore through his clothed and his back, leaving sore, bloody scratches. They were nothing, however, compared to the cuts that littered his chest and neck.

"D-…Damn it…" He winced as he picked himself up again. Once again he scrambled up the hillside, sliding down numerous times, but always picking himself up. His brother just laughed at the sight.

It was agony. His hands had been torn to ribbons, a boot had come off in the fall, so the same thing happened to a foot. His chest wouldn't stop bleeding, nor would the gash in his stomach.

Akito waited untill Yuki had reached the top of the hillside, then put a hand on his head and pushed him back down. When he reached the bottom, Yuki cried out with ain and frustration, throwing anything within his grasp at the cruel, laughing, evil form of his brother.

Finally he reached the top, and stayed there. He drew his sword with shaking hands, and blood dripped down the blade. "Why are you doing this? Why? I thought you were my brother?"

"I am. And I love you." Akito sneered, his black hair veiling his cruel eyes.

"Then _why?_ Why do you want so badly, to hurt me…?"

"I don't. I want you to stay with me. To be mine. I told you that you would be punished if you didn't comply to what I asked of you. All you had to do was _write a reply to a letter._ Is that so much to ask?"

"You…You never said…I don't understand… You said, you said you wanted me to…_be yours…?_ We're…We're… You're a man…" Yuki tried to understand, his head clouded, his wounded chest throbbing. "You're my brother…"

"And?"

"So…WHY ARE YOU SAYING ALL THIS TO ME!" Yuki dropped to his knees, his sword disappearing under the watery mud. The rain pounded his back. "I…Hate it…I can't stand all this…Just let me leave…Please…I…I hate you…"

"You are so beautiful." Yuki opened his eyes. He found his chin being cupped in the pale hand of his brother, and felt cold lips pressed against his.

He tried to pull away, but the other wrapped an arm around his neck, and he was to weak to attack him once more.

He stared at the face as it moved away from his. He saw the blood on Akito's face, imprinted from his own. Only then did he realise that his brother had just kissed him.

"A-…Aki-"

"Don't speak…" Akito held his arm behind Yuki's neck to keep him upright as his energy began to slowly drain from his body like the blood. He pulled Yuki towards him, and held his head aginst his chest.

Yuki tried to pull away. He would have run. Anywhere. Anywhere to get away from the pan he was feeling now, both mental and physical. But he wasn't strong enough to resist his brother's grip.

Akito looked down triumphantly at the wounded and submissive form of his brother, and held him away again. Yuki's head fell to one side, too weak to keep it upright. _So….Is this where it ends…? Not in the arms of my loved one…but at the hand on my cruel brother… God…Please…Don't let it be…The last…Rain…_

-

AN: I am such an evil writer…

An2: -_gives Yuki massive hug-_ sorry babe, gotta write dramatic storyline.

Yuki: But…But I…You meanie…

AN3: No S.T.O.A.N.F.I during ultra dramatic chappies. Sorry. nn

AN4: Next chap is last, then epilogue. _–sniffles-_


	8. A Wolf Hails The King

**The Last Rain**

**Chapter Eight: A Wolf Hails The King**

_No…Yuki….Yuki…don't go…you cant…you have to…no…NO! _Tohru sat up in bed, her cheeks stained with the slowly drying tears. _What's happening out there…?_

Since about an hour go, she'd had the strangest feelings. As if he was never going to return to her. As if he was losing to a power greater than his own, in a battle of life or death.

The fear was growing stronger as he grew weaker. She could sense it.

She got out of the bed they usually shared, and walked to the window. She opened it, and was met with the raging wind and rain.

Ignoring the temperature, she knelt down and leant on the window sill. _Please…Send something….Anything. It doesn't matter if it's an animal, a human or an angel….Just send something to save my Yuki. Please…_

-

"What… What do you want…from me…?" Yuki whispered. He felt weaker by the second. His clothes were stained with blood and mud, and he could taste the hot metallic blood in his mouth. His brother was still holding him. He was almost grateful for the arms that kept him upright, because if Akito let go he'd probably fall back down the hill.

Akito looked at his brother. The blood showed clearly on his porcelain white skin, which had paled considerably in the last hour. He sneered once more. "I want you to submit yourself to me, and swear to return my love for you."

Yuki shook his head. "That…Brother, is one thing I cannot do. My heart…It belongs to another. And no matter what you do to me, I know I am safe. Her love…Is protecting me."

_Save my Yuki._

Akito let go of his brother's shoulders. Yuki slumped over backwards so he was facing the sky once more. He tried not to swallow the blood in his mouth. As a result it slid out from his mouth and dripped down his face.

_Please… Someone do something._

"What is that supposed to mean…?"

"You can kill me… But my soul will be delivered. Her heart will protect me, wherever I go."

_Protect Yuki._

"Are you saying you will not comply?"

_Please._

"…Yes."

Before he knew it, the point of Akito's sword was digging into his neck. "How dare you! You don't realise that I have the upper hand here! You can't… You can't disobey me like that… You can't! I won't… Allow it. You have to choose. It's me, or your life."

He dug the sword deeper, and began to draw blood. Yuki winced. "I cannot betray the love I have now."

Akito's face came into view. He looked furious. He glared at Yuki, and put both hands on the hilt of his sword, as if he was about to plunge it straight in. "You have spoken your last words."

Yuki shut his eyes.

_SEND SOMEONE!_

Yuki tried to block out the pain. _This is it. Goodbye…Tohru. I'm…Sorry._

-

"Dad!" Kyo turned his head from the horse. Haru looked to. There, slipping in hat seemed like rivers of flowing mud, was a very young girl, with dirty red hair and tears running down her face.

"Keiko!" Kyo leapt down from the horse, and began to wade through the thick mud, which seemed like it would sweep his daughter away. Finally hereached her, and picked her up, hugging her tghter than ever. He closed his eyes. "Don't ever leave me like that again….Don't ever let go of my hand…"

"I'm sorry…"

Haru smiled from the horse. "Well, we've got Keiko, now Yuki's the last one to find."

"Keiko…." Kyo carried her over to the horse and put her on. She held onto Haru's back as her father hoisted himself up. "…You haven't seen your other uncle, have you?"

"Two brothers." The girl said, the tears no longer falling from her eyes.

"What?" Haru turned around and looked at the girl. "What do you mean brothers?"

"One with black hair, the other's was grey. And… The one with grey hair saved me."

Kyo and Haru looked at eachother. "It…It couldn't be…Could it?" Said Haru.

"No…There's no way he could have survived out here on his own. Not after never having seen the outside before."

"Well… Akito was the kind of person who never let anything stand in his way. He was very determined. But he's also capable of killing someone without caring. He hates people so much."

Kyo looked at his baby girl. "Keiko, where were they?"

"The hill. There was a wolf… And-"

_Someone…Help him…_

"What?" Haru spurred on the horse and began to canter through the mud.

"Haru, what are you doing?"

"We have to get to them…If there are wolves… They'll be gathering now. It's night.

-

Akito had been pushing his sword down a little more every minute. But now Yuki's time was up. He spoke once more.

"Those were the last words you'll ever speak. And here are the last words you'll ever hear." He leant down so he could feel Yuki's cold breath on his face. He smirked, and licked a little blood of his brother's cheek. "Death…To the king of Sohma."

A tear ran from one of Yuki's closed eyes, and he closed them harder. He awaited the pain, and the death. _The one thing she never taught me. How…Do you say goodbye…?_

There was a sound like a shot through the air, and wind whistling past. Akito cried out, and Yuki opened his eyes.

There was an arrow in Akito's chest, right in the centre. His eyes were wide open. The sword was still leaning on Yuki's throat, but it fell from between Akito's fingers and slipped to the side, only grazing a little of Yuki's neck. Blood seeped from the wound and dripped onto Yuki's face.

"Ak…Akito…?"

Akito fell, his body leaning towards the edge of the slope. Yuki extended his arm and stopped him from falling.

He used what must have been the last of his strength, and pulled Akito back up. He once again lay flat on his back, the energy almost completely gone. Akito slumped over him, his face next to Yuki's, looking at him.

Yuki felt a sudden pain in his stomach, and cried out. Akito was glarng at him, and was forcing his fingers into the wound on Yuki's stomach.

Yuki winced and tried to pull Akito off. Finally he turned over, rolling himself onto his brother's body.

"Why…?"

"I want you to feel the same as me! I want you to feel my pain."

"Feel this!"

Yuki grabbed Akito's limp arm and put hishand against his bloody chest, so his heart beat pulsated through Akito's hand. It was quivering like a bow string.

Akito opened his eyes even wider. "Wh-…What-"

"I feel your blood…And you feel mine. We're brothers. Your heart pushes my blood, and mine pushes yours. You're trying to draw your own blood, brother."

Akito felt tears welling in his wide black eyes. "I…Wanted you to be the last thing I see."

"I…I will be."

Akito smiled…The first he had without being sinister. He felt Yuki's cold hand holding his, and his brother's heart softly beating against it.

He felt his eyes slowly drifting closed, and breathed out one last long sigh. His pain was over.

Yuki looked at his brother's quiet face, and sighed. _It's finally over…_

But it wasn't. Suddenly he felt the whole of the ground below him shaking. He looked around, and dropped his brother's dead hand. "Wh-…What's ha…happening…?"

Suddenly the rocks gave way, and the entire hill top came loose. Now the mountain was almost twice as high, and Yuki fell with Akito's body, along with rocks the size of horses and endless mud.

He fell onto the rocks, and felt as if his entire body had been crushed. He looked around. Akito's body was nowhere in sight.

"A…Akito…?" He made himself get up, and tried to find the corpse. "Akito!" He slipped in the mud. It was almost waist deep now, the rain still falling.

The corpse was likely under the rocks or drifting with the mudslide now. Yuki found a big rock, and collapsed on it.

The energy was now totally lost. Blood was still running from him as if he had an endless supply. He smiled. _Finally…Can I have peace now…?_

The sound of sloshing mud was getting louder. Yuki closed his eyes. He once again tried to block out everything he could sense.

"Y-YUKI!"

-

AN: I lied. Next chapter is last, then epilogue. I always do this…

AN2: Will Yuki live? Or die? Is Akito really dead? Is that mud carrying disease? What's the horse's name? Find out, in the next and final edition of: The Last Rain!

AN3: I'm not good at writing landscape…


	9. A Prayer In The Rain

**The Last Rain**

**Chapter Eight: A Prayer In The Rain**

Kyo once again leapt off the horse and tried to run through the mud. "Oh God…"

Haru stayed on the horse but pulled it over to where Yuki lay, and Keiko clung to his back.

Kyo shook Yuki lightly, and then hard. He didn't respond.

Haru got off the horse. "He…He's not…"

Kyo looked at his brother. He was covered in blood. "He's still breathing… How did he get hurt so badly…?"

"Look, you take him back on the horse. I'll catch you up with Keiko. It can't carry the four of us, and we have to get Yuki back as soon as we can. I'd take him…But I'm afraid I'll get lost."

Kyo looked up at him, and picked uyp Yuki. "Take care of her."

Haru lifted the little girl off the horse and carried her. "Take care of him." Kyo smiled, and carefully draped his brother over the beast. He then mounted it from the rock.

He put a hand gently on his daughters head, then spurred on the horse.

Haru watched as his two older brothers sped away."Good luck, Yuki."

-

Kyo felt the rain falling softer. Yuki was sitting in front of him, his head lying against his arm.

"The…Rain…"

Kyo looked at his brother. His face was tilted sideways, so he was looking straight ahead. He could see tears mingled with blood and rain on his face.

"What…?"

"She's like…The rain."

"…Yuki…"

"Even when you can't see her…You know you will…Because it will always rain…Someday."

Kyo pulled the horse to a walk. "Yuki… It…You…"

Yuki felt the tears coming, and knew Kyo could see them. "I…I don't want the rain to end… I…I want to see her again…"

Kyo felt Yuki trying to sit up, and wrapped an arm around his chest to help him. His other hand held the reign. "You will. I promise. We're going home…Right now. I'm taking you to her."

"I… Want the rain…To fall…always."

Kyo shut his eyes. Yuki was confusing himself, as always, and just seeing it made him overflow with compassion and anxiety. "I… I know. It'll always rain, brother."

Yuki clung to his brother's arm, and the two of them hastened across the forest.

-

Momiji ran back through the woods as fast as his legs could carry him. Tears ran down his face, and he needed desperately to reach the palace before Tohru realised he had gone, or the others arrived.

The he'd dropped the quiver full of arrows a while back, but was still holding the bow in his hand as he ran.

"_Death…To the King of Sohma." He was about to kill Yuki. I knew it. I could see everything from that tree. I did the only thing I could think of. I drew an arrow, and shot my brother._

_I'm a murderer. I…committed patricide…I killed my big brother…_

He tripped on a rock and the bow flew out of his hand and fell from the rock shelf to the muddy river below. …_But what else could I do?_

-

Yuki had fallen asleep once more. Kyo was nearly falling asleep himself. The moon was still high, and the trees only sent ghostly shadows down atop the face of his dying brother.

He'd lost all hope. He had no idea if he was even going in the right direction, and Yuki wouldn't stop bleeding. The grey stallion had blood staining it's white coat.

Kyo buried his head in his brother's shoulder, and sighed. "I'm sorry, Tohru."

_Help him. Please._

Yuki blinked his eyes open. "K-Kyo…?"

Kyo looked at him. He was sure Yuki was already dead. "Yuki…"

"Bring me back to her…..Like you said you would…"That was enough. Kyo pulled the horse to a sudden stop, and began to rip his own cloak. "What…What are you doing…?"

Kyo didn't answer. He tied a strip round Yuki's stomach and pulled it tight. It didn't take long for the blood to seep into it. He took another strip, and another, and another until he was nearly satisfied Yuki would survive at least the journey back, if not longer.

He kicked the horse's sides until it began to gallop, and rode furiously ahead. Mud flew from around the horse's wildly moving hooves.

Yuki winced, the horse's movement jerking his body so the wounds moved aswell. Kyo tried to ignore it.

_Help Yuki._

He closed his eyes. Something was nagging at the back of his head. It had been for hours. It was as if a prayer was sounding in his brain. The thought that he couldn't grant the wish it was begging for was hurtful enough.

_Save Yuki!_

"Stop it!"He cried. The horse ran faster. _I'm trying._ _God…I am trying._

_Help him…Please._

"SHUT UP!" Kyo yelled, the horse shied at the sudden noise. "I'm trying! Can't you hear me! I'm saving him! I'm helping him!"

He desperately kicked the horse, but it couldn't run any faster than it already was. Yuki was unconscious again, and Kyo felt as if his life was slipping by.

"Don't give up Yuki…I'm…I'm taking you to her…Can you hear me? I'm bringing you to her, and she's praying for you."Yuki gave no reply. Kyo shifted his arm that was round his waist a little higher so it was on his heart. _Still beating…_

-

_Help Yuki. Save him. Protect him. Do whatever you can. Send him an angel, or some creature who can stay his death. Give him courage. Give him hope. Give him life. Keep him awake for me to see him. I know it's a lot to ask, but I love him so very much. Keep him living, so I can hold him one last time. Please. I beg you._

_-_

AN: Epilogue next. Hope you have enjoyed this! –_sniff-_

AN2: I will give details about something I'd like readers to tell me at the end of epilogue…K? Love you guys!

AN3: Fic is dedicated to:

Princess Mononoke

Leanne

Natalie

TK

Lara

Liz

And Laura, who read every chapter when I told her about it! n.n

Thankyou all!


	10. Blood In The Snow

**The Last Rain**

**Epilogue: Blood In The Snow**

"_Oh God…Yuki! What happened to him…?_

"_I don't know… We just found him like this."_

"_Yuki? Yuki! Can…Can you hear me…? Oh no…Yuki! YUKI!"_

_-_

The snow fell silently onto the plains of Akitaio. The Palace staff, the nobles, a few relatives and the remaining royals all wore black. Tohru sniffed. She was trying so hard not to cry.

Kyo and Haru and Momiji all looked solomn. They looked down at the familiar face in the grave below them. His pale skin, his closed eyes. The peaceful expression on his scarred face.

Tohru couldn't help it anymore. The tears flowed down her cheeks and she tried to wipe them away. The snow fell on the crowd and the body, and as words were said in remembrance, they were all silent.

Everone remembered hw his life must have been. Alone. No way to see the outside. Untill, because of one accidental mistake, he was let out of his cage.

"Don't cry, Tohru." A soft voice said from behind her. She felt warm arms wrapping around her, and held onto them gratefully.

She felt Yuki kiss her on the cheek and closed her eyes.

_Thankyou, whoever you are. Thankyou._

-

AN: Wahoo! Thass it! Yay! Free! …You know… it's funny…But I get the feeling there amy be more I can write…

And so, the question I wanna ask you is: do you want this to become a trilogy? Are you willing to read another sequel? I have never written a trilogy before…Or a sequel infact…So it is an entirely new thing for me…So…I'd like to, so if you want one, please say so.

AN2: It was dead Akito by the way. If you're a little slow…


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